We werent really checking for B.C. https://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/06/sports/rick-kuhn-sentenced-to-10-years.html. Thus, for example, if participating bookmakers determined Boston College to be an eight-point favorite in a particular game, Kuhn would be paid a bonus, usually $2,500, if they won by less than eight points. He killed people. Edward McDonald was a Federal Prosecutor who interrogated Hill in May 1980. Enter Rick Kuhn, a senior forward for the Boston College basketball team during the 1978-79 season. Im not angry at the school. After reading this I feel its the right story to add in to existing script. I continue to feel like I have to defend myself, all these years later, even after the government tried their case against me and I was found innocent. That includes Rick Kuhn, the former minor league baseball player who started the scandal and who . Out of everything that happened, thats one thing that hurts me tremendously, Cobb said. And in that article in Sports Illustrated, Henry Hill says, The word came back that Cobb was enthusiastic. The key phrase there is The word came back. I dont know what Rick Kuhn was telling Henry Hill or the Perla brothers. So the scam continued. Hill reportedly cleared over $100,000 ($373,400 today) and bettors higher up the line were said to have made up to $250,000 ($933,400 today). All Rights Reserved. Based on the 30for30 ESPN documentary on this scandal, Kuhn's story changed multiple times regarding this. The ringleaders knew having just one player wouldnt ensure the desired outcome. Jim Sweeney: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com I didnt know what that was all about. But it wasnt a coincidence that one day, the F.B.I shows up asking me about gambling, and the next day Im no longer with the team. The true story of the famous Boston College point shaving scandal. Result is the outcome of the syndicate's bets. Self-described Boston College basketball fixer, he confessed the conspiracy to agents investigating the signature crime of his mob crew, the Lufthansa heist immortalized in Goodfellas. Recruited into scheme by Mazzei. "The kid wants to do business," said Tony. The Boston Globe story was initially investigated and written by a young Boston College alumnus named Leslie Visser, who would go on to become a very accomplished, groundbreaking journalist and role model for women who aspired to work in the field of sports media. RICK KUHN RECALLS POINT-SHAVING CASE - The New York Times You just say, yeah, I'll do it with no intention of doing it. Jim Sweeney admits that Kuhn gave him cash. The initial informa tion came from Henry Hill, a Government informant in the Lufthansa case, who casually toldthe investigators that Mr. Burke had been inv olved in a collegebasketball point-shaving scheme. If you missed Part I, you can read it here. Playing for the Mob: The Story of College Kids Breaking Bad Despite pursuing charges against Burke for other crimes, a conviction for fixing basketball games is finally what got him 20 years in prison, where he died of cancer in 1996. College basketball's 30 biggest cheaters that tainted the game But what was I going to do, take it to court?It was here that they began telling Perla we would have to have Cobb. But I never agreed to fix any games or shave any points. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Zimmerman also asked the court to consider Kuhn's 'crime-free background' and his cooperation with federal authorities in the Cobb case. The 80-minute documentary tells how BC forward Rick Kuhn conspired with two of his hoodlum friends from Pittsburgh to bet against the Eagles. When he arrived on campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, Cobbs internal mantra was, I gotta stay eligible. With those persistent affirmations dancing through his mind, he took his academic responsibilities seriously from day one. Hill and Burke were brought into the scheme, after receiving approval from Lucchese family capo Paul Vario. Other times, they didnt deliver as promised, which caused some very dangerous and ill-tempered men to lose large sums of cash. I didnt think anything of it. Nothing in sports comes with a guarantee, though. I needed a string of bookmakers, maybe 10 or 15. If the limit is $25,000, then anything above that, they call somebody else and get them to take it. I was so frustrated at one point that I got on my bike in Stamford, Connecticut and just started riding. Theyre no match for us. He told me, Well good, I plan on betting on those games and if you guys win and it turns out like that, Ill take care of you., Man, I was one of the most recognizable athletes on campus and people would come up and talk to me all the time, people I didnt know, Cobb continued. Burke was allegedly the ringleader behind the heist, then the largest to happen on U.S. soil, though he was never charged. The Boston College (BC) team of 1978/79 were far from the first to get entangled in a scam. You want to tell people what they want to hear, then you want to go away.. Also a BC captain, Sweeney claims he reluctantly agreed to be recruited into the scheme. Democrats, Republicans remain split on debt ceiling plan. Four Others Convicted. Whatever happened to Rick Kuhn? | SportsJournalists.com Former Boston College basketball player Rick Kuhn will go on trial today for his alleged participation in a "point shaving" incident during the 1978-1979 basketball season. He traveled throughout the world, getting paid to play the game that he loved. (Photo by Frank O'Brien/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) PURCHASE A LICENSE. She knew the terrain in terms of what I needed to be doing, said Cobb. He is benched in his final year. white basketball player named Rick Kuhn, who has hopes of playing in the NBA. Any recount of the BC points-shaving scandal should come with a free CharlieCard for a story with more twists and turns than the citys T system. would play a few games each year, Cobb was awash with emotions. You're going to get us killed, Sweeney recalled. He said he was approached in the summer before his senior year. More regulations and laws results in more eyes scrutinizing each game. Sent Weekly. But that didnt matter. DISCLAIMER: Online Wagering is illegal in some Jurisdictions. Kuhn said he spent much of the game on the bench, unable to affect the outcome. On August 12, 2008, an anonymous user edited the Wikipedia article on the scandal, naming former player Joe Streater as an accomplice in the point-shaving, recruited by Kuhn alongside Sweeney. You realize that you cant play if you dont do this. They would also ensure protection for the enterprise in the event that the unsuspecting bookmakers, all of whom had toughs at their disposal to collect unpaid debts, discovered they were being swindled. Burke was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment. NEW YORK -- Former Boston College basketball player Rick Kuhn, jailed for his 1981 conviction in a point-shaving scandal, has asked for a reduction of his 10-year prison sentence. Visser became the NFLs first female beat writer in 1976, when she was assigned by the paper to cover the New England Patriots. Henry Hill later played by Ray Liotta in GoodFellas - was serving time for extortion, and befriended a drug dealer called Paul Mazzei. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. I told him, I think were gonna blow them out, we look really good. Im stuck. I dont know what went down because I wasnt involved. Adding more legal operators to choose from also means bettors wont need to risk their money with illegal, and possibly dangerous, bookies. My family has suffered. Jimmy said he was finished. Sometimes, B.C. Kuhn's Conviction Upheld Unanimously - Boston College Golub was a brilliant lawyer, and he told me that hed have to interview Ernie first to see if he was gonna take the case on. 1978-79 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team He worked hard in class. Betting big money on college basketball is very hard because very few bookies get into it seriously. Hill was listed as a co-conspirator, but was not named as a defendant. While Hill was being questioned, FBI agents inadvertently mentioned his frequent trips to Boston around the time of the Lufthansa heist. [3] Kuhn was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment,[4] later reduced to 28 months. I have an incredible circle of supportive friends and have met some amazing people who have impacted my life in ways that I cant even begin to describe., Mr. ''Rather,'' Judge Bramwell said before imposing sentence, ''he emerges as a somewhat greedy individual. Their strategy was effective Boston College, a five-point favorite, covered the spread with a 9080 win over Connecticut. The center is a 6 ft. 8 in. Burke was sent to prison for 20 years (though he later died of cancer in 1996). Help for Inmates Before, During and After Prison Many details of the scandal remain murky. Cobb's trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 31 before Judge Leonard Wexler. I had told him I'm not interested in doing this. The Shadow League is a narrative company. Remembering The Boston College Point Shaving Scandal - Gambling The centerpiece of today's hearing was the testimony of Kuhn, who was convicted in 1981 along with four gamblers for conspiracy to commit sports bribery and other crimes stemming from a point-shaving plot at Boston College during the 1978-79 season. Today, Cobbs relationship with Boston College remains strained. Thats the real strength of his story, that you pick yourself up and make something of yourself.. He took advantage of an opportunity that surfaced when a pro team from Israel offered him a spot on their roster. The February 6 game against St. John's was a "push" (winning back exact bets), as the syndicate neither won nor lost when St. John's prevailed 8576, the exact point spread (nine) the bookmakers had offered.[i]. Bruce Pearl, now a successful college basketball coach who studied at BC, says Sweeney was a perfect undergraduate. Jim Sweeney was not charged. So I didnt even go on trial with Kuhn and the mobsters that put the whole thing in motion.. Man, I would watch Jo Jo White, Dave Cowens and John Havlicek playing on television, on that same famous floor where Bill Russell and Bob Cousy and all of those great Celtics teams won all those championships, said Cobb. In this case, while the spread was as high as 5, the syndicate was able to lay just 2 points, and therefore pushed when Holy Cross won by 2. Especially those who, as far back as they can remember, always wanted to be a gangster. talked to the Nets, their head coach Kevin Loughery called him in and said, You know why I have to let you go, said Alswanger. I called my buddy Frank Melzer, who was an attorney, said Alswanger. Chicago mayor calls on Texas to cease sending migrants to the city. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. The phone calls flooded in from his friends and family in Boston and Connecticut, with despaired voices on the other end asking, Did you do this? As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. He dreamed of walking away from Boston College at seasons end as one of the schools most revered sons before embarking on what he hoped would be an accomplished, financially rewarding career in the NBA. Rick Kuhn - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com However, as noted below, the scheme also worked in games where the Eagles were expected to lose anyway, with them shaving points so that the syndicate could bet on the other team winning by more than the point spread. Apparently, someone called into the online editor the second to inform them of the "miss." I think you could poll a lot of people in the business and the Boston College scandal is off their radar. April 30 (UPI) -- Intense Russian shelling took place overnight in Kherson and Kharkiv, Ukraine, pounding residential areas and killing a 58-year-old civilian. I have suffered. Rick Kuhn Sentenced to 10 Years - The New York Times That really happened. My girlfriend and I bought a new stereo, television and some furniture. They treated me great. I just had to be alone, Cobb told the reporters afterwards. If the scam was to work, they needed another player. Gambling.com is a registered trademark of GDC Media Limited. Your email address will not be published. A look at who the key figures were in the Boston College point shaving scandal: Kuhn was a BC player at the center of the controversy. Three of Mr. Kuhn's co-conspirators were sentenced by Judge Bramwell on Jan. 22. Rick Kuhn was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment yesterday for his part in a point-shaving scheme that was hatched during the 1978-79 season, when he played basketball for Boston College. Molinas had been suspended by the NBA seven years earlier for betting on games in which his team played. The syndicate was able to lay nine points when the game was first available to be bet, and therefore pushed. A few blocks from Boston College, the place that held so much meaning to him, where hed worked so hard to create his lifes purpose, the symbolism was inescapable when he found that he had a flat tire. Rocco comes up to me and says, Hey, sometimes I bet on games and I wanna know how you think you guys are gonna do against Stonehill and Bentley? said Cobb. Judge Bramwell noted that no witness at the trial had suggested that Mr. Kuhn had been a reluctant participant in the scheme. The other vital parties were the bookmakers, and it was very much a plural, as Hill explained. When he was implicated in the scandal, I was shocked.. Also, maybe dont do business with mobsters? Gambling.com is tracking sport cancellations (and eventual resurgences) on an interactive map below. The Perla brothers were small-time gamblers who saw the 1978-79 Boston College basketball season as a perfect opportunity to earn a lot of money. And as black kids who loved ball in Boston, he represented something for us, giving the younger generation something to aspire toin terms of their basketball skillsbecause he was putting in some serious work.. I took every single practice and every single game seriously, said Cobb. The second. Its very hard to detect. We were looking good as a team and my goal was to be the best player I could possibly be. This page is not available in other languages. We were all so excited for him. After he interviewed him, he fell in love with him and told me, Hes innocent. Those later betters on St. John's lost money because they laid more than the eventual nine point margin of victory. II. The December 16 game against Harvard was chosen as the second test for the scheme. Jack Molinas engineered a larger scheme in 1961, which resulted in 37 arrests of students from 22 colleges. Rick Kuhn College Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com Rick Kuhn Position: Forward 6-5 (196cm) School: Boston College (Men) SUMMARY Career G 75 PTS 4.9 TRB 3.9 AST 0.6 FG% 48.8 FT% 48.6 Kuhn Overview On this page: An ad blocker has likely prevented this video content from loading. RICK KUHN ASKS TERM REDUCTION - The New York Times And he also cultivated interest, in the area's black community, in terms of being engaged and intrigued bywhat was going on with Boston Colleges basketball program. was favored to win a game by ten points, Kuhn had to make sure, if the game was in play with the mobsters and the bookies, that they won by less than ten in order for the gamblers to make money. He told me to keep playing and working hard and that one day I might get another chance., When the story first broke in January of 1981, Cobb was in shock. May 1 (UPI) -- Elon Musk's SpaceX launched a Falcon Heavy rocket with a payload of satellites from the Kennedy Space Center on Sunday after having to abort the mission days earlier. Sweeney had no doubts regarding the severity of what he was involved in. Confident from their recent success, the conspirators viewed the February 10 game against Holy Cross as an opportunity to reap the full benefits of their scheme. A forward for Boston Colleges basketball team, he wasnt the strongest player and was more interested in partying. I thought he might have been a student, because he was young and I saw him hanging around Rick Kuhn all the time. The players involved in the scandal were paid between 500-1000$ each game and were given the chance to double it betting on the games. hoops that blazed a trail, Mills continued. The Perla brothers proposed a simple scheme: they, along with Kuhn, would select certain basketball games where the projected point spread separating Boston College from its opponent was expected to be significant. Im going off on the basketball court, scoring like crazy, the gamblers are losing their shirts, and they start talking about, We have to have Cobb. Anybody thats ever seen me play knows that I was only stuck in one gear, and that was super-charged-turbo! Rick Kuhn, the former Boston College basketball player who was convicted last November, and sentenced last February for his involvement in the point shaving scandal during the 1978-79 basketball season, told Federal authorities last May that his life had been threatened because of his decision to cooperate in the case, according to The . Suspecting that some bookmakers might be getting wise to the scheme, the conspirators temporarily revised their strategy after the UCLA game. 197879 Boston College basketball point-shaving scandal. Truth About Boston College Points-shaving Scandal May Never Be Known According to Dr. Roy Nicks, chancellor of the Tennessee Board of Regents, the investigator, Ben Hale, will direct an inquiry into published reports that athletes at the school have been given money and special favors. Burke, through Hill, would front the money to pay the players, forwarding the money through Mazzei and the Perla brothers. I was focused in the moment. After the four-week trial in 1981, Jimmy Burke was sentenced to 20 years in prison, while Paul Mazzei and Tony Perla were sentenced to ten. But Kuhn was a player of limited ability, so he recruited his roommate and best friend, who also happened to be the most important player on the floor, the teams senior point guard, Jim Sweeney. And now, here I was on that same floor, pumped sky high, giving my defender buckets! The same channels would be used for the passing of the point spread from Burke and Hill to the players. When I think about my journey, it brings tears to my eyes. The Boston scandal followed next, and wouldnt be the last. The stories from all participants have changed in various interviews and often contradict each other. Kuhn is angry and hurt and has no respect for the game because of . Hes innocent., When they indicted me, they wanted Peter Vario, the mobster, so they tried us together, said Cobb. Hill also had to get approval from his bosses; Jimmy Burke, later played by Robert De Niro in GoodFellas using the surname Conway, and Paul Vario, portrayed by Paul Sorvino. and I were the victims of the same circumstances that were beyond our control. I was like, Yeah, whatever. Sure enough, a few weeks later, he hands my girlfriend an envelope. The Mobsters If you missed Part I, you can read it here. But for many, there is a fierce bitterness that still lingers to this day. Tell me what you did and what you didnt do. Further successful bets followed in games against Fordham and St. Johns. The syndicate was very happy with this result, and Kuhn was given cash to distribute to the players for their efforts. Sweeney has said Kuhn told him this would be the final fix. His snitching stream began then, and during one conversation with law enforcement, he casually mentioned the Boston College scheme. Being at Boston College, when I first got there, was so amazing, said Cobb. RICK KUHN TELLS OF DEATH THREATS - The New York Times The other two kids made whatever choices they made, but look what was done to Ernie. And look what he did to the lives of those kids. FRANK O'BRIEN/GLOBE STAFF/FILE 1978 Win some, lose some Ernie Cobb now coaches the. Burke had Hill fly to Boston on November 16, 1978, to meet with Mazzei, Kuhn, Tony Perla, and any other member of the Eagles team interested in participating in their scheme. I said, If this dude has cash like that to burn and wants to give me $1,000 because I told him wed destroy Stonehill, sure, Ill take it. Maybe he was trying to cultivate a relationship with me and soften me up for something down the road. All of Henry Hills and the Perla brothers information was coming from Rick Kuhn, and who knows what he was saying to them to cover his own skin., (Jim Sweeney, Photo Credit: tampabay.com), Kuhn and Sweeney got in over their heads, Cobb continued. won by only two points and I had a lot of losing money down on this game. Kuhn allegedly made $2,500 per fix. Ernie Cobb played professional basketball in Israel for 17 years, where he learned to speak fluent Hebrew. Kuhn's attorney, Gary Zimmerman, said his client recognized the seriousness of his crimes and that his stiff jail sentence 'was a stern warning to other college athletes.'. Former Boston College basketball forward Richard Kuhn and four - UPI Betting - Chronicling the 'worst fix ever', the 1978-79 BC point - ESPN Hill flew into Boston, at the behest of Jimmy Burke, late in 1978 to meet with Mazzei, the Perlas, Kuhn and Sweeney at the Logan Airport Hilton and ensure that everything was in place. Id call Rick (Kuhn), Id tell him the point spread on the Boston College game, and Rick would say if theyd have a chance or not.. He really set the tone in terms of being a strong, dynamic, willful player that wondrous talents like John Bagley, Michael Adams and Dana Barros, all of whom went on to play ball in the NBA after their careers at B.C., followed. Surprise! Rocco and Tony Perla were giving money to Rick Kuhn. Yes, all of our slot games have a free play mode where you can use demo credits to play the gam Said Hill, "He wanted me to fly up to Boston. ''Every college athlete may now come under suspicion from coaches and fans. Kuhn and Hill say hes lying. April 30 (UPI) -- Cuba has postponed its annual International Workers' Day parade for the third time in more than 60 years as fuel shortages hamstring the country. A few months short of his release from prison, - UPI Archives A Cooperative Kuhn Has Life Threatened. Boston College confirmed the investigation on Friday. Hill went into witness protection and died in 2012 of a heart attack. The other defendants were all found guilty, with Kuhn, Mazzei and Tony Perla sentenced to 10 years, while Rocco Perla got four. As such, its impossible to be certain which game was the first they attempted to fix. The season was drawing to a close and the criminals were tired of a scam which didnt always pay off. Mr. Kuhn, a reserve forward on the 1978-79 Boston College team, and four other men were convicted last November of a plot to manipulate the scores of six games that season to provide betting coups for gamblers. I felt like, You put my name out there, so let me clear my name! When they investigated me, I told them straight up about the $1,000 that Rocco Perla had given me. At the close of the two-week trial, Alswanger was the last character witness who took the stand in Cobbs behalf. Jimmy loved to beat bookmakers and Paulie liked to beat anybody., Hill flew to Boston in December 1978 for a meeting with the men involved. The conviction of former Boston College basketball player Richard Kuhn for his involvement in the point shaving scandal during the 1978-79 basketball season was upheld last Friday by a unanimous decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. Standard editorial rights. ''A substantial argument can be offered,'' Judge Bramwell said, ''that a substantial term of incarceration imposed on this defendant will be recalled in the future by another college athlete who may be tempted to compromise his performance.''. It wasnt an absolute disaster but it was a cousin. Mr. Kuhn, a reserve forward on the 1978-79 Boston College team, and four other men were convicted last November of a plot to manipulate the scores of six games that season to provide betting. Its gonna be no contest. "Ive bought him a colour TV and paid for some work on his car.". The spread was for them to win by seven though, so the bet lost. An obvious lesson here: Crime doesnt pay. Almost $6 million in cash and $875,000 in jewelry was stolen at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Dec. 11, 1978. Sweeney claiming he didnt fix is equally undermined by his admission he accepted $500. The very next day, the Nets cut me., When the F.B.I. Boston College was favored by twelve to thirteen points, but won the game by only a three-point margin, 8683. Over all, he said, the scheme failed. Whatever his understanding, Cobb underperformed in the Harvard game, scoring 12 points when he averaged 23. The Return Of Bing Bong? Leopards dont change their spots. We get home, I open it up, and theres $1,000 in there.. This has gone on for four years. Federal prosecutor who investigated the case and BC graduate. In 2014, the ESPN-produced 30 for 30 series debuted Playing for the Mob,[6] the story about how Hill and his Pittsburgh associates, and several Boston College basketball players, perpetrated the point-shaving scheme during the 197879 season, an episode briefly mentioned in the movie Goodfellas.